Places to eat in Penang

Definition of Nasi Kandar - This is the Indian Muslim version of Nasi Padang as it's a simple meal of steamed rice and where you'll get to choose from a variety of hot curries and other dishes. This dish is supposed to come from this island but I've heard that you can find it in KL and other parts of Malaysia too.

During the time that our food guide took a break from us, we always make some bad choices for food. This was an example in case. Though KAYU NASI KANDAR is supposed to serve one of the best nasi kandar in town, everything turned out to be uninspirational and worse, expensive! My hubby paid something like RM9+ for a nasi kandar dish consisting of beef curry (rendang), fried sotong (squid), lady's fingers curry (okra) .Oooh pricey! Mine just cost a little lesser ( RM7) because I only had fish eggs, vegetable curry and fish curry. The fish eggs turned out be prehistorically hard and the the curries were flatter than yesterday's roti canai ( Indian flat bread ) . Yuck, this KL-franchised chain won't see the likes of me anytime soon. I later trooped down to another Mamak ( Indian ) store down the road to eat something else.

Favorite Dish: Nada. Zilch. Everything sucks here, including the fish curry which is touted to be good and the "famous"ayam negro was pretty bland*.

*This is bloody politically incorrect but that's what Penangites call the fried chicken dipped in black soya sauce.

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Definition: Springy egg noodles served with dumplings made from savory minced meat,coarsely diced shrimp, finely minced ginger, finely minced onions, sesame oil and soya sauce.

Favorite Dish: I'm never been a fan of wonton noodles but every other patron at Kheng Pin Cafe seem to order this dish so I had to try it as well. Visually the noodles looked dammm good. Heaps of plump dumplings, red-roasted meat, flakes of chicken flesh, shiitake mushrooms, bok choy and spring onions topped the dish. It looked even better the the wonton noodles I had at Leith Street but still it lacked the X factor. I won't recommend this highly for now.

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Definition : Dark herbed broth poured over cooked noodles, garnished with vegetables, and topped with tender pieces of duck slices.

Recommended by The Australian (Australia's National Daily Newspaper )

Favorite Dish: Now if you're a backpacker, chances are you would crash in one of the many pads over here in Love Lane. Yes, the cheesy moniker did come about when rich businessmen kept their mistresses in the hotels over here a long time ago. But other than cheap sleeps, you can get really good Teochew food over here, in a beautifully restored shophouse, no less! The interior of the restaurant looks like an art gallery and an antique store all at once, with pictures, iron wrought lamps and dining tables with sewing machine bases. It's all too easy to get distracted but once you look at the menu, you'll discover lots of good old Teochew ( Southern Chinese) food that were priced reasonably (below Rm10). But instead of recommending all the rich dishes there, I thought it would be good to talk about their simplest dish. The humble duck noodle dish which came with really delicious herb broth and thin, resilient egg noodles. The wait staff told me later that the noodles were specially imported for the dish and were tastier than the local version. How right they were, it was delicious.

Cost of the Duck Noodles:Rm3-4

Afternote: I later found out that The Australian also recommended the duck noodles I mentioned!

Opening Hours : Do note it's CLOSED on a Monday.Open every other day from 11.30am to 9pm.

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Definition of Penang Laksa: A rice noodle dish in a spicy fish mackerel broth soup . Unlike the ghastly rich coconut version that you can find in Singapore ( Katong Laksa ), this dish is almost plebian in comparison as the main ingredient in the broth is mackeral (ikan kembung) and "asam" or sour tamarind. Besides these two, there are ingredients that give Penang laksa its distinctive scent and they include herbs like the lemongrass, ginger flower (bunga kantang), blue ginger (lengkuas) . Typical garnishes include mint, pineapple slices, thinly sliced onion and a dollop of hai-ko, a thick sweet prawn ketchup. This dish is iconic to Penang and is well-loved by the locals who eat it at all times of the day!

Favorite Dish: I admit it, I'm addicted to Penang Laksa and I confess that I've never been sober since young as my Penangite Grandma cooked the best Penang Laksa in the world. Sadly, she has passed on and to feed my addiction, I make pilgrimages to the land of laksa to search for the best . To me the best Laksa is one that is chockful of fragrant herbs and the broth thick and savoury with flaked mackeral. It also has to be topped with a dollop of briny hai-kor ( prawn paste) . I've tasted a whole lot of laksa and my favourite has always been the Balik Palau laksa, but the one at the wet market in Ayer Hitam comes to a close second. Sure, the ambience at a wet market is appalling - you have to sit on wobbly stools, wedged between the wet market and a busy throughfare but the Laksa, ooh the Laksa! Savoury and flavourful with fish and the rice noodles soft and slippery. I could eat bowfuls of these... Take a look at my list and see if you agree with me if this is the best Laksa can be had at these place. Also, vote for the best noodle ever. I'll tally up the votes .

Bpacker's Penang Laksa List
1.Ayer Hitam Laksa( Wet Market 'neath Kek Lok Si )-3:00pm to 9:00pm
2.Balik Pulau Laksa ( Coffee Shop at T junction )
3.Penang Rd Laksa ( Beside the famous Penang Rd Chendol )
4.Lorong Selamat Laska
5.Jalan Delima Laksa ( taste pretty much like Ayer Hitam Laksa)

Definition: Pancakes / Crepes made of wheat flour, stretched paper-thin and fried to a crisp before it is rolled in a conical shape. It's called Prata Tissue in Singapore and Roti Tissu in Malaysia.

Favorite Dish: Somehow, I prefer the roti tissu ( Prata Tissue) that is served in Penang. Unlike the sugar-coated Prata Tissue that is served in Singapore, the Roti Tissu (RM1.50) are drizzled with sweet condensed milk. The rich, milky taste goes better with the crisp pancake compared to the sugar crystals. Hmm, it tastes even better when it's washed down with foamy teh tarik (RM1) ( a local tea latte ). Interestingly, Penangites also call the Roti Tissu a helikopter ( helicopter ) since this crisp pancake comes with a conical peak! LOL. Try their delicious roti pisang ( banana ) too.

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Definition of Lobak (say LOR-BAHK) - Succulent rolls of pork wrapped with bean curd skin and deep fried until crispy. Lobak is usually paired with its crispy companions of prawn fritters, fish fritters, octopus, fried beancurd, spring rolls and cucumber with chili and gravy for dipping. If you're Asian, you might ask for an additional side order of preserved century eggs, if not, the black and greenish fermented eggs will only serve to up your Fear Factor reserve. Lor Bak usually eaten as a snack or as an appetiser.

Favorite Dish: The LOR BAK that is served at Kheng Pin Cafe ( along Jalan Penang ) is different from the rest as the squid, prawns and meat rolls comes coated in a special batter that is crisp and delicious. It's also fascinating to watch the Lor Bak Hawker as he fries his food , the constant motion of the frying was like a practiced waltz - very rhythmic, precise and hypnoptic. If you're not keen on the lor bak here, try the one at Mcalister Rd. The lor bak there is better than the Char Kway Teow! Avoid the inedible one at Keng Kwee Street ( off Penang Road , at the Coffee Shop where they serve the Famous Teochew Chendol Stall )

Definition: A variant of the prawn noodle soup served in Singapore. The Penang version is more rustic and ingredients are more bountiful since Penangites are not so uptight about eating healthy like Singaporeans;p You'l find a bowl of egg noodles doused in a yummilicious stock made from fresh and dried prawns, pork bones and croutons of pork lard. It is then garnished with prawns, eggs, leafy water convolous ( crunchy local greens) pork ribs, crisp deep-fried shallots and served with a side of chilli sambal.

Favorite Dish: Now if you're used to eating prawn noodles in Singapore, you'll be mighty shocked when with the Penang variant. Unlike the version that you'll find in the south where the prawn is the star ingredient , the northern cousin is fiery red and chockful of other rustic goodies, including crisp croutons of pork lard . One of this rich dish is enough to fulfill all of your nutritional requirements in a day;p.

Though this picture is pretty, the dish was so-so. There are better hokkien mee to be had in Ayer Hitam and elsewhere. Post the question in the forum for better recommendations.

Afternote: The topic of Hokkien mee has been discussed in the forum lately and one VTer has named more than one place to find a better version of the dish! Click here to take a look.

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Definition of soft-boiled eggs - Good soft boiled eggs are eggs cooked to a precision of 5min or so . The eggs should be white and the yolk, yellow, runny and yummy, allowing butter-toasted bread to be dipped into this rich substance and savoured slowly.

Favorite Dish: When Penangite Chin mentioned one day that he would pick us up at 7am to have breakfast near Balik Pulau, hubby and I thought that he had totally lost it. Actually, he had rather, when he stepped foot on his hometown. All those disciplined routines of eating salads and yogurts in Singapore went out of the window and he returned to his roots almost immediately with a regular plates of Char Kway Teow . Well, Chin did pick us up, bleary eyed and all at 7am and he did drive all the way to Joo Leong Cafe. A far-flung coffee shop in the backwoods of Penang, complete with kampung houses and a stray chicken or two pecking by the side. The thing was, this godforsaken place was well-known to all true Penangites for its soft, butter - toasted, Indian-made bread and perfect eggs that were soft-boiled to perfection and born to be dipped . Ah, and the strong bitter arabica coffee was supposed to be good too. Well, Chin was right again, it was goooood and well worth the lack of sleep and long journey. We liked it that the bread was cut into squares and waiting to be dipped. It was perfectly toasted too and tasted heavenly with the rich eggy dip.

Breakfast is served from 6.20 am to 11.30 am